1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to toys which emit light and more particularly relates to toy grenades which emit a flash of light to visually simulate an explosion.
2. Description of the Prior Art
With respect to light emitting toys, there has been at least some attempts to develop aerial toys which have a light producing and emitting capability. In this respect, U.S. Pat. No. 3,528,659, issued to J. Benham on Sept. 15, 1970, discloses an aerial projectile toy which essentially consists of a rod designed to be twirled through the air by the use of a second propelling rod which imparts the twirling action. The twirled rod utilizes spring loaded batteries which, in response to the centrifugal force generated by the twirling action, come into contact with light bulbs positioned in the ends of the rod so as to illuminate the same as it moves through the air. Once the twirling action slows down, the batteries break contact with the respective light bulbs and the illumination thereof ceases. Of course, the lighting effect achieved by the twirled rod is of a continuous nature as long as the rod is twirling sufficiently fast and no provision is made for a flash of light for visually simulating an explosion upon an impact of the rod with the ground. To the contrary, no light is generated when the twirled rod strikes a surface.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,731,928, issued to W. Wolfe on May 8, 1973, there is disclosed an athletic training device which essentially consists of a training ball having a translucent portion and a spark producing device mounted inside the ball and movable across an abrasive surface also contained therein. Deformation of the ball upon impact results in a relative movement between the abrasive surface and the spark producing member to create a spark that is visible through the translucent portion of the outer spherical member. Similarly, any impact of the ball such as by a bat, hand, foot, etc., will generate a spark within the ball. This device, however, is not intended to visually simulate an explosion and does not create a very bright light as might be expected through the use of a flashcube. Further, the ball is not intended for use as a toy, such as a toy hand grenade, but is rather envisioned as being used strictly as a training device whereby a ballplayer can determine a point of impact of the ball upon its striking the ground in a field.